Greece sees future with ‘renewed sense of optimism,’ PM tells Chinese trade fair
“For Greece the crisis was a tragedy. But, as with any tragedy, in the end comes catharsis. We are emerging from the dark years stronger, wiser and more realistic. After 10 very difficult years, the Greek economy is making a dynamic recovery,” Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Tuesday, speaking at the opening ceremony of the China International Import Expo 2019 in Shanghai.
Mitsotakis stressed the strategic relationship between Greece and China, which has developed over the past decades and is growing in scope, talking about ties between the two countries that go beyond trade, investment, technology, tourism and economy. “Both countries boast cultures that have left a strong imprint on the human history,” he said.
The prime minister spoke of the development of shipping in Greece and noted that the Greek shipowners control 25 percent of the global merchant fleet, while adding that Chinese shipping giant Cosco's investment in Greece is “an important success story.”
He stressed that this investment is an example of how a Chinese company was bold enough to invest in Greece at a time when the country was not considered “uninvestable.”
“My government has just approved a plan for additional investment of 600 million euros in the port of Piraeus. It is already the largest port in the Mediterranean. It can and will become one of the three largest in Europe,” Mitsotakis said.
He also spoke at length about the course of the Greek economy and the negative interest rates on Greek securities, estimating that the country can achieve growth of 3 percent in 2020. [ANA-MPA]
